This week, the Department of Natural Resources announced a new section of its website that will help inexperienced anglers find great spots to go fishing in Michigan. The Family Friendly Fishing Waters section of the website will connect interested individuals with local fishing opportunities.

The Family Friendly Fishing Waters website features a map of Michigan. Visitors simply click on the county they are interested in fishing and are provided with a list of one or more family-friendly locations to fish. Every county in the state has locations featured.

“We are very excited to be launching the Family Friendly Fishing Waters section of the website,” said Fisheries Division chief Jim Dexter. “We recognized more people would probably go fishing if they knew where they could go to do it. We hope to remove that barrier by getting interested individuals connected with our state’s great fishing.”

The DNR designated water bodies as family-friendly based on their ease of access, high likelihood of success in catching fish, identified amenities, and other details. To build this section of the website the DNR asks for the public’s help in submitting locations and digital pictures from throughout the state that would be easy for new anglers to access and use.

Each water body’s online profile includes its geographic location, driving directions, parking information, hours of operation, species of fish available, typical bait used, and much more.

Potential locations will continue to be accepted by the DNR. The Family Friendly Fishing Waters submission form can be found at www.michigan.gov/fishing.